Means for capping bottles



y 4, 1939. M. T. cuR'nN ,1

MEANS FOR CAPPING BOTTLES Filed Nov. 2a, 1958 28 l 26 #22 156 21 199 6 9is $5 42 Q2 6 a J 21 49 r? '56 a6 l 41 as $20 7 e 4 u 98 415% e7 46Patented July 4, 1939 UNITED STATES MEANS FOR CAPPING BOTTLES Marion T.Curtin, Rochester, N. Y., assignor to Germ-Proof Gap, Inc., Rochester,N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 28, 1938, Serial.No. 242,843

10 Claims.

The invention relates to a rotary lift capping unit for bottle fillingandcapping machines.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple, practicaland comparatively inexpensive bottle capping unit of strong and durableconstruction designed for use in bottle filling and capping machines andcapable of enabling a thin sheet metal cap of aluminum or other suitablematerial to be rapidly applied in sealing relation 0 to bottles with aquiet, smooth, silent movement devoid of jerk or strain and withoutliability of rupturing bottle caps of this character or chipping thebottles whereby the bottles may be used over and over again for a muchlonger period than heretofore.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bottle capping unit ofthis character adapted to compress with a spinning movement a cap ofaluminum or other material into tight sealing engagement by rollingpressure and by means adapted at the completion of the capping operationwhen relieved of pressure to be automatically thrown out of engagementwith and clear of the bottle by centrifugal force, whereby the bottlewill be instantly freed or released, thereby materially lessening thetime ordinarily required for capping a bottle.

Another object of the invention is to enable a bottle to be capped witha metal cap by spinning and pressure applying means entailing onlyrotary movement of such means and an upward movement of the bottlewhereby the means for compressing the skirt or flange of a bottle capinto sealing engagement with the rim or head of the bottle will becaused to travel or have relative movement from the top of the cap tothe lower edge of the flange or skirt of the cap, thereby pressing theflange or skirt of the cap against the rim or bead of the bottle andstretching the thin metal at the crotch or angle formed by the bead orrim and the neck of'the bottle to effect a tight sealing engagement ofthe cap with the bottle.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rotary lift capping unitadapted to permit a lim ited initial upward movement of the bottle priorto applying pressure' to' the cap by the rotary spinning cap engagingmeans, whereby the rotary lift capping unit is adapted to accommodateitself to the variations in the size of the bottles.

It is also an object of the invention .tov improve the method ofapplying metal caps to bottles by spinning the flange of the cap on thebead or rim of the bottle under pressure of the spinning operation andin the presence of heat generated by friction due to the speed of thespinning operation and the pressure, whereby the flange of the cap isironed out and stretched over and around the bead or rim of the bottleand snugly pressed in tight sealing engagement with the rim or bead.

With theabove and other objects in view, the 5 invention consists in theconstruction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafterfully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and pointed outin the claims hereto appended, it being understood that various changesin the form, proportion and minor details of construction, within thescope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of a rotary lift capping unitconstructed in accordance with this invention and illustrating thearrangement of the parts when the same are in their initial position.

Figure 2 is a similar view illustrating the arrangement of the partswhen the bottle is at the limit. of. its upward movement and the latchis tripped for releasing pressure on the bottle.

Figure 3 isa horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line33 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a horizontal sectional vew taken substantially on the line4-4 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a detail view of a portion of one of the roller carryingrotary spinning levers and the means for guiding the same.

In the accompanying drawing in which is i1- lustrated the preferredembodiment of the invention, the rotary lift capping unit comprises inits'construction upper and lower telescoping plunger members I and 2operating in a relatively fixed vertically disposed tubular guide 3 andadapted in the capping operation to be connected or locked together byapivoted latch 4 which is tripped by the means hereinafter described atthe completion of the capping operation to release the upper plunger.member I and relieve the mechanism of the pressure produced by theupwardmovement of a bottle 5. The bottle 5, which is of standard shape,is filled in a bottle filling machine and is delivered in the usualmanner to a. bottle carrier 6 having a shank 'lprovided with ananti-friction roll 8 arranged to run on an inclined track 9 in theordinary manner to. produce an upward movement of the bottle and anoperation of the rotary lift capping unit. As the means for filling thebottles and for transferring them from the bottle filling mechanism tothe capping mechanism may be of the usual ordinary construction and isWell understood in the art, further illustration and description thereofare deemed unnecessary.

The bottle cap I3, which may be constructed of thin sheet aluminum orother suitable sheet material, is'formed from a disk of metal and isshaped previously to being applied to the bottles and consists of a fiatbody portion and an annular flange or skirt l l which is curved in crosssection to conform substantially to the configuration of the convexannular surface of the bead or rim l2of the head or mouth of the bottle.The cap is preferably stamped out so that pressure will bring the'rolledflange of the cap to fit snugly underneath the rim or bead of thebottle, and terminate at the bottom of the bead or rim I2 contiguous tothe neck of the bottle. The flange I I of the cap I is of sufiicientdiameter to enable the caps to be readily placed on the bottles in theusual manner from a magazine, not shown. As the means for feeding thecaps from a magazine to the filled bottles is old and well knownv in theart, illustration thereof is deemed unnecessary.

The .lower plunger member 2 is provided at its lower end with a head I3,which is adapted to engage the fiat body of the cap I0 and underpressure ofa coiled spring 2 hold the cap firmly on the bottle when thelatter is moved upwardly into engagement with the head I3. The coiledspring 2 is disposed on the lower plunger member.2 and is interposedbetween the plunger head I3 and the lower end of the fixed tubularguide. The spring will maintain pressure on irregular contour of bottlesand effectually prevent caps from slipping. When the lower plungermember is in its initial position as illustrated in Figure 1 of thedrawing, the latch 4 is located a short distance below a shoulder I4located at the top 'of a recess I5 and adapted to be engaged bythe latchin the upward movement of the lower member of the plunger. The lowermember of the plunger has an initial movement or play of approximatelyof an inch to enable the plunger to adjust or accommodate itself tovariations in the size of bottles and .the continued upward movementafter said initial upward movement of the lower member of the plungercarries the latch into engagement with the shoulder I4 0 and connectsthe upper member of the plunger to the lower member and causes the twoplunger members to move in unison for operating a plurality of camlevers I6. The upper'portion' l I of the lower plunger member 2 istubular to receive a stem I 8 formed by reducing the lower portion ofthe upper plunger member, and the said lower plunger member is providedadjacent its upper end with an exterior shoulder I9 adapted to engageand rest upon the inner end of a set screw 23 mounted in the tubularguide 3 at the lower end thereof and projecting inwardly into the pathof the shoulder I9 for limiting the downward movement or drop of thelower plunger member at the completion of a capping operation and afterthe bottle has been removed from beneath the head l3 of the lowerplunger member. Theshoulder 2I formed by reducing. the lower portion ofthe upper plunger member to form the stem engages stop lugs 22projecting inwardly intothe tubular guide and adapted to support'theupper plunger member in position for enabling it to be reengaged by thelatch 4 after the same has been tripped and after the lower plungermember has dropped downwardly to its initial position. The latch 4 latchhas an upwardly extending tooth or engaging portion and an outwardlyextending trip arm which is carried into engagement with an adjustablelatch tripping sleeve or ring 25 at the limit of the upward movement ofthe plunger members and at the completion of the capping operation forreleasing the upper plunger member and relieving the mechanism ofpressure. The latch tripping sleeve or ring 25 is adjustably secured tothe exterior of the tubular guide I by a set screw 26, and when thelatch is moved upwardly into engagement with the tripping sleeve orring, the engaging portion of the latch is swung out of the recess I5and out of engagement with the shoulder I4, which permits the upperplunger member to drop and move downwardly within the tubular guide Iuntil its shoulder 2! comes in contact with and is sup ported by thestop lugs 22.

The tubular guide 3 is rigidwith a fixed bracket 21 and the cam leversI6, which are preferably three in number and equidistantly spaced aroundthe tubular guide, consist substantially of an approximately segmentalhead pivoted by a pin 28 or other suitable fastening device in a hangeror bearing bracket 29 depending from the fixed support or bracket 21.The arm 30, which extends inwardly from the segmental head of the camlever I6, is provided with a set screw 3| which projects from the loweredge of the arm and is engaged by the upper end of the upper plungermember for actuating each of the cam levers when the upper and lowerplunger members are moved upwardly by the bottle during the cap-v pingoperation. The set screws 3| enable the parts to be adjusted forregulating the pressure exerted by the cam levers on a floating abutmentring 32 arranged on thetubular guide and located above and adapted toactuate a floating cam ring 33 also mounted on the tubular guide. Thetwo separate rings 32 and 33 are provided for enabling a cushion 34 tobe interposed between the rings for cushioning the action of theoutwardly and upwardly from the outer end of the eccentric curved edge36 and arranged concentric with and forming a portion of a circle, ofwhich the pivot 28 is the center, so that the continued movement of thecam lever will maintain the cam ring and the levers under the pressureproduced by the eccentric cam edge 36 without subjecting the 'cam ringand the levers 35 to an added pressure.

The floating cam ring has a' downwardly tapered portion presenting aninclined annular surface .38 which rides on an inclined edge or surface39 of each of the levers 35. The levers 35,.which depend from and arecarried by a horizontal gear wheel 30, operate in slots 4! of the gearWheel and are preferably four in number and are equidistantly spacedaround the gear wheel, the members of each pair of the levers 35 beinglocated diametrically opposite each other, as clearly illustrated inFigure 3 of the drawing. Each of the levers 35 is mounted on ahorizontal pivot 42 located adjacent the upper end of each lever 35 toform a relatively short upper arm which extends above the gear wheel 48and a relatively long lower arm which depends from the gear wheel 40.The lower ends 43 of the levers 35 are angularly disposed and extenddownwardly and inwardly and have pivoted to them, by pins 44 or othersuitable fastening devices, yokes 45 which constitute holders forrollers 46-. The rollers 46, which are designed to be constructed ofsoft yielding rubber or other suitable material, are circumferentiallyconcave and are arranged in an inclined position above the head of thebottle and the cap I0 when the parts are in their initial position, asillustrated in Figure 1 of the drawing. In this position, the flathorizontal portion of the cap is located approximately of an inch belowthe lower edges of the inclined concaved rollers, and, at the completionof the initial upward movement of the bottle, the latch l engages theshoulder l4 and the rollers are swung inwardly into engagement with thecap by the action of the cam levers, the floating cam ring and thelevers 35 which are arranged to swing radially in relation to thebottle. The gear wheel 49 is continuously rotated by the meanshereinafter described and, when the rollers 46 are carried intoengagement with the cap, they engage the cap at the juncture of the flatbody portion and the depending flange or skirt H and operate on theflange or skirt with a spinning action to compress the flange or skirtagainst the rim or bead of the bottle and, as the bottle moves upwardly,the rollers have a relatively downward movement on the flange or skirtof the cap and thereby operate on the same from the upper edge of theflange or skirt to the lower edge thereof progressively and, with saidspinning action, tightly compress the flange or skirt against the beador rim. This rotative movement of the rollers under pressure, coupledwith the spinning operation around the rim or bead of the bottle neck inthe presence of heat produced by the speed of the spinning operation andthe friction incident thereto, facilitates ironing out of the flange ofthe cap on the rim or bead of the bottle neck, although an effectiveseal is effected in the absence of generating of heat incident to thespinning operation. This results in a slight stretching of the flange orskirt and a tight sealing of the same against the bottle at the crotchformed by the bead and the neck of the bottle. It has been found thatthis spinning operation sometimes irons out and stretches the flange orskirt of the bottle cap as much as one-quarter of an inch and a tightsealing of the bottle is thereby effected. The concave periphery of therollers conforms substantially to the configuration of the bead or rimof the bottle, as clearly illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawing, andduring the latter portion of the capping operation, while the arcuateedges 31 of the cam levers are in engagement with the abutment ring 32,the pressure of the rollers against the flange of the cap remainsconstant, and, at the completion of the capping operation at the limitof the upward movement of the bottle, the latch t is tripped by thetripping ring 25 and the levers 35 are thereby relieved of pressure andare automatically thrown outwardly clear of the bottle and free of thecap by centrifugal force and the parts returned to their initialpositions illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawing.

The depending radially movable roller carrying spinning levers 35 areguided in their inward and outward movements in slots 4'! of horizontalguide lugs or arms 48 of a tubular member 49, consisting of a ring ordrum depending from the horizontal rotary gear 48 and formed integralwith or otherwise suitably fixed to the same. The horizontal rotary gear46 rotates freely on the tubular guide 3 and is supported by a shoulder50 thereof and any suitable form of bearing may, of course, be providedfor the gear wheel Ml if desired. The gear wheel 15 is continuouslyrotated by means of an electric motor El mounted upon the bracket 21.The motor shaft is provided with an extension 52 depending from thesupport 21 and having mounted on its lower end a pinion 53 which mesheswith the gear wheel 49 and rotates the same during the operation of therotary lift capping unit. Any other suitable means, however, may beemployed for imparting rotary movement to the gear wheel or rotaryelement All which carries the radially movable spinning levers. Anysuitable means may be em ployed for supporting the roller-carryingspinning arms of the levers 35 in their initial position. In thedrawing, the slots or openings ll in the horizontal gear wheel are showninclined and the walls thereof may be conveniently employed for limitingboth the inward and outward radial swinging movement of the levers 35.

When the latch is tripped and the levers 35 are relieved of pressure andare thrown outwardly by centrifugal force, the upper member of theplunger descends and is supported by the stop lugs 22. As soon as thebottle is removed from beneath the head of the lower member of theplunger, the lower member and the head drop to their initial positionand are supported by the set screw 20. In this position of the lowermember of the plunger, the latch 4 is located below the shoulder I4 andits engaging portion has moved into the recess I5 under the influence ofa spring 54 and the latch is again in position to pick up the upperplunger member when the lower plunger member moves upwardly beyond itsinitial movement. During the initial upward movement of the bottle,there is no pressure exerted by the rollers against the sides of theflange or skirt of the cap, and the rollers are free from and out ofengagement with the flange of the cap, so that no pressure from therollers of the spinning arms will be applied to the bottle cap duringsuch initial upward movement of the bottles to be capped.

When the bottle has completed the initial inch play on upward movement,the rollers apply pressure to the cap, that is, the lower ends of therollers are carried into engagement with the cap at the top or upperedge of the annular flange or skirt, and the cap is subjected to thespinning action of the rollers simultaneously with their pressure. Thiscombined spinning action and pressure action begins at the limit of saidinitial upward movement of the bottle and is applied first at thejuncture between the flat top of the cap and the top of the annularflange or skirt, the pressure continuing during the spinning action asthe rollers are carried downwardly throughout the entire exteriorsurface of the flange or skirt of the cap from the top thereof to thelower edge of the cap.

The spinning action of the rollers against the aluminum cap begins atthe highest'point on the flange of the cap and the spinning arms, andthe rollers will stretch the flange portion of the aluminum cap over theexterior of the rim or bead of the bottle by a pressure applicationthereof which gradually increases with the inward move ment of thespinning arms and which is maintained without added pressure during thelatter portion of the capping operation due to the concentric portion ofthe cam levers. No pressure from the spinning arms is applied to thebottle cap until the rollers are adjacent the rim or bead of the bottleand until the cap is held firmly in position on the bottle by the headof the lower plunger member so that there is no liability of the capbeing accidentally displaced from its proper position on the bottle.

The concave peripheries of the rollers conform substantially to theconfiguration of the curvature of the rim or bead of the bottle and theflange of the cap is pressed tightly into sealing engagement with therim or bead of the bottle and is spread or ironed out at the bottom ofthe bead or rim at the crotch between the same and the neck of thebottle, thereby efiecting a tight sealing engagement between the flangeof the cap and the bottle. The flexing and stretching of the flange ofthe cap by the rollers is effected without danger of rupture of the capand there is no danger of rupturing or breaking the cap at the end ofthe spinning action as the rollers are automatcally thrown outwardly bycentrifugal force and are carried awayirom the cap as soon as thesealing of the bottle is effected and the spinning arms relieved ofpressure by the tripping of the latch which maintains the upper andlower plunger members in connected relation during the bottle sealingoperation. The two-part plunger, besides permitting this trippingaction, also enables the mechanism to accommodate itself to variationsin the size of bottles. There is no stretching of the flat body portionof the cap for the reason that it is held down firmly on the upper edgeof the neck of the bottle by the head of the lower plunger member andthe sealing of the bottle in this manner provides additional spacewithin the bottle to permit expansion of the contents of the bottle dueto freezing, thereby lessening the liability of the cap being rupturedor forced off the neck of the bottle by the freezing of the contentsthereof.

What is claimed is: c

1. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning arms having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap,means for rotating the spinning arms around the bottle cap, andmechanism for applying pressure to the spinning arms for moving the armsinwardly into engagement with the flange of the bottle cap, saidmechanism including an actuating cam, upper and lower plunger membersadapted to be moved into actuating engagement with the cam by the upwardmovement of a bottle, and a latch for holding the upper and lowerplunger members in connected relation until the completion of thecapping operation.

2. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning arms having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap,means for rotating the spinning arms around the bottle cap, andmechanism for applying pressure to the spinning arms for moving the armsinwardly into engagement with the flange of the bottle cap, saidmechanism including an actuating cam, upper and lower plunger membersadapted to be moved into actuating engagement with the cam by the upwardmovement of a bottle, a latch for holding the upper and lower plungermembers in connected relation until the completion of the cappingoperation, and means for tripping the latch at the completion of thecapping operation to relieve the spinning arms of pressure and permitthe spinning arms to be thrown outwardly by centrifugal force.

3. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning arms having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap,means for rotating the spinning arms around the bottle cap, andmechanism for applying pressure to the spinning arms for moving the armsinwardly into engagement with the flange of the bottle cap, saidmechanism including an actuating cam, upper and lower plunger membersadapted to be moved into actuating engagement with the cam by the upwardmovement of a bottle, and a latch for the holding the upper and lowerplunger members in connected relation until the completion of thecapping operation, said latch permitting an initial upward movement ofthe lower plunger member prior to latching the upper and lower plungermembers in connected relation.

l. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning levers pivotally mounted intermediate of their ends andprovided at one end with means for engaging a bottle cap, an annular camfor engaging the levers at the other end thereof for applying pressureto the levers, cam levers for actuating the annular cam, upper and lowerplunger members mounted for simultaneous and independent movement, thelower plunger member being provided with latching means for connectingit to the upper plunger member, said plunger members being adapted to beactuated in connected relation by upward movement of a bottle whereby abottle cap is firmly held on the bottle and pressure is applied to thespinning levers for moving the same into engagement with the cap forcompressing the flange of the cap into sealing engagement with thebottle.

5. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning levers having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap, agear wheel carrying the said levers, a motor, geared means actuated bythe motor for rotating the gear wheel, an annular floating cam arrangedto engage the levers for applying pressure to the same to move thelevers into engagement with the bottle cap, and means actuated by theupward movement of a bottle for operating the floating cam includingmembers in latched connection during upward movement of a bottle beingcapped, and means for releasing the latched connection between saidmembers when the bottle reaches the limit of its upward movement.

6. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning levers having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap, agear wheel carrying the said levers, a motor, geared means actuated bythe motor for rotating the gear Wheel, an annular floating cam arrangedto engage the levers for applying pressure to the same to move theleversinto engagement with the bottle cap, a plurality of cam leversarranged to operate the floating cam for actuating the spinning leversto move the same into engagement with the bottle cap, and means actuatedby the upward movement of a bottle for operating the cam levers.

7. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning levers having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap, agear wheel carrying the said levers, a motor, geared means actuated bythe motor for rotating the gear wheel, an annular floating cam arrangedto engage the levers for applying pressure to the same to move thelevers into engagement with the bottle cap, a plurality of cam leversarranged to operate the floating cam for actuating the spinning leversto move the same into engagement with the bottle cap, and upper andlower plunger members mounted for simultaneous and independent movementand adapted to be actuated by the upward movement of a bottle, the lowerplunger member having latching means for connecting it with the upperplunger member, and means for automatically tripping the latching meansto disconnect the plunger members and relieve the spinning levers ofpressure at the completion of the capping operation.

8. A bottle capping unit, a horizontal gear mounted for rotary movementand provided with depending guides, a plurality of radially movablespinning levers mounted on the gear wheel and operating in the guidesand provided with means for engaging a bottle cap, a motor, meansactuated by the motor for rotating the gear wheel, a floating camarranged to actuate the spinning levers for applying pressure to thesame to move the levers into engagement with the bottle cap, a pluralityof cam levers for operating the floating cam, and plunger means arrangedto be actuated by the upward movement of a bottle for operating the camlevers.

9. A capping unit including a radially movable spinning member havingmeans for engaging the flange of a bottle cap, means for rotating thespinning member around the bottle cap and mechanism for applyingpressure to the spinning member for moving the spinning member inwardlyinto engagement with the cap, said mechanism including a springcontrolled plunger comprisinng a pair of members, one member having acap engaging end adapted to hold by spring pressure a cap firmly on theneck of a bottle, a latch automatically connecting said members duringupward movement of the plunger, and means for automatically releasingsaid latch when the plunger reaches the limit of its upward movement.

10. A bottle capping unit including a plurality of radially swingingspinning arms having means for engaging the flange of a bottle cap,means for rotating the spinning arms around the bottle cap and mecahnismfor applying pressure to the spinning arms for moving the arms inwardlyinto engagement with the flange of the bottle cap, said mechanismincluding a plurality of pivoted cams equidistantly spaced and havinng aconcentric actuating portion and an arcuate portion concentric with theaxis of the cams for maintaining the pressure on the spinning armswithout adding additional pressure thereto.

MARION T. CURTIN.

